


Pumpkin

by Amelia_Bennet



Series: In-Between [1]
Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: F/M, Halloween, Interdimensional Travel, Mentioned Kim Yoosung, Romance, liminal space, mysmehalloweek
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-26
Updated: 2018-10-26
Packaged: 2019-08-07 17:49:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16413068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amelia_Bennet/pseuds/Amelia_Bennet
Summary: It all started that October day on the Pumpkin Farm when you try and open the Mystic Messenger app, nothing.  While searching for the perfect Pumpkin it happens for the first time. You enter the overlap and meet Yoosung Kim. This once and lifetime opportunity feels overshadowed by the fact that he keeps looking up at the sky longing for the missing party planner.





	Pumpkin

**Author's Note:**

> My submission for Msyme Halloweek 2018. This fic can be read as a stand-alone but it's part of a large story. 
> 
> Prompt: Pumpkins

You smile at the laptop, it was October, and every person on Tumblr was greeting the month like an old friend.

_Hello! I miss you! And welcome back!_

There was something about the month that seemed to bring out the best in the community.

Closing down your laptop screen and glancing at the clock you notice that it was already 11:00 am. If you didn’t hurry, your trip to the pumpkin farm would be cancelled! You head to the washroom and get ready, picking out the cute sweater you bought the other day.

It’s noon by the time you finish and hear the beep of your phone. Rushing, you see a message pop up on the lock screen.

_I’m here._

You glance out the window and see a black car sitting on the driveway. You wave at your friend from the window then rush out of the room with your satchel.

“I’m heading out now! Can you lock the door?” Your voice echoes in the house and the distant voice of your mother replies to take care and not to worry about the door.

Entering the car, you turn to your friend grinning at finally finding a day to go to the pumpkin farm. The drive is comfortable, and you can’t help but chat about the newest episode of the show you were both watching, theories flying left, right and center.

You glance at your phone and frown; there are no notifications and its been hours. You wake the phone from sleep mode and click on the Mystic Messenger app. The screen remains blank and there is no voice saying “Cheritz.”

Turning to your friend, you ask her if the app has been working for her today. She responds that she hasn’t been playing any routes recently, but she would try it once they reached the location. Looking out the car window, you marvel at how the countryside starts and the city ends. The trees were all orange, red and gold as far as you could see.

When you finally arrive at the farm, you hop out and start taking pictures of the place. The farmhouse and the red barn looked like something out of a postcard.

You notice your friend on her phone.

“You’re right, the game isn’t loading at all,” she says. You make a mental note to send Cheritz an email later when you get home.

You decide to forget about the broken game today—there was so much exploring to do, and of course, you wanted cute pictures with the pumpkin to post online later!

Walking behind the farmhouse and following the dirt path your eyes widen when you see the field covered with pumpkins. It looked like something right out of a Tim Burton movie, and you wonder if there was a hill close by that you could pose dramatically on.

You spend some time posing for pictures and taking selfies with your friend. When you finally start looking for a pumpkin, it becomes increasingly obvious how difficult it was to find the perfect one. It had to be a perfect circle with no blemishes. The stem would also have to protrude a specific way to create the perfect jack-o-lantern. You kept walking further and further out the field until you were near the treeline. Looking back you see your friend in the distance waving at you to come back.

Just as you were about to give up and head back, you see it from the corner of your eye. The perfect pumpkin! You gasp a little, and you call out to your friend and tell her to wait a moment. You walk close to the pumpkin and see it was the perfect size and shape. You move to the stem and position the cutters to it and make a quick snip.

Lifting the pumpkin and inspecting it once again, you can’t believe your luck. In the distance, you hear your name, and so you turn around, but step on debris that makes you lose your footing. As your knees go crashing to the ground, your grip on the pumpkin loosens, and you watch the orange ball roll into the forest—seemingly with a mind of its own...

Your jaw drops at this paranormal activity you just witnessed. Did your pumpkin get possessed and roll away?!

The Ghostbusters theme starts ringing in your bag and you know that it's your friend calling.

“Are you okay?!”

You tell your friend about the seemingly magical pumpkin and she tells you not to move an inch, but you see it now in the distance; your pumpkin just leaning against a tree.

“I think, I might have been seeing things, but I see my pumpkin now. I’m going to grab it quickly!”

You see your friend walking in your direction, so you decide to grab the pumpkin and run back.

Running into the forest, you sprint towards the pumpkin, but whatever October magic was happening you felt the distance grow longer and longer. You try and run back but find that the road will not allow you to return to the field. Fishing out your phone you try and call for help, but the phone call doesn’t even go through.

The air is colder and you start to wonder if you have been cursed. You immediately regret not listening to your friend and waiting for her. Testing out both directions you notice that the pumpkin near the tree seems to be getting closer while the field seems to remain at the same distance. If this were some fae playing a trick, you would have to play the same game until you figured out how to beat it...

Walking towards the tree, you finally reach it and feel the breath you’ve been holding in release. The pumpkin seems unharmed and still in perfect condition despite the tumble it took.

Picking it up you notice another field of pumpkins past the tree. Weighing your options, you know that whatever magic was taking hold of this area was not letting you go back. You walk at a snail’s pace to the field; it doesn’t look magical or any different from the other field. Well, there was this epic looking hill that did remind you of the Nightmare Before Christmas. You pull out your phone again and decide to take photos at the hill and show your friend later. Might as well collect evidence about this strange incident.

After a while, it becomes obvious to you there was no way back to where you came from, so you lay down on the side of the hill, wondering if you’ll ever be able to go home. Just as you look at the clouds, thinking about your fate, you hear a soft voice frantically trying to get your attention.

“Miss!? Excuse me! Are you okay?!” You push yourself up and feel your eyes bulge out of their sockets.

You swear for a moment that this blonde running towards you is Yoosung Kim from Mystic Messenger. He kneels next to you and asks if you’re alright.

Your hands are shaking and there doesn’t seem to be enough oxygen entering your lungs right now.

The blonde is frantic as he pulls out a sealed water bottle from his backpack. He opens it up and hands it to you. The water is cold and it calms your nerves for a moment. You blink repeatedly trying to get this vision of Yoosung to disappear.

Have you gone mad? Did you fall down the rabbit hole?

“Are you okay?” he tries again. You pause before finally answering him.

“Yes, thank you. Who are you?”

He says his name and you feel like maybe you are indeed going insane because you swear he just introduced himself as Yoosung Kim.

“Yoosung,” you test out saying his name. It’s odd saying the name of someone who doesn’t exist. Yet, here he is in the flesh looking at you with an expression you could only peg as a mixture of worry and relief.

“Where are we?”

Yoosung’s eyebrows furrow together. “Uhh, this is the C & R Pumpkin Farm,” he says.

C & R Pumpkin Farm?! This was Jumin’s farm?! You want to ask him a million questions about the RFA, but then the sudden thought comes to you. Mc, the character you played and lived through, was “she” here too...? You would have to be careful with your words.

Yoosung is frowning and you know that it looks suspicious for someone not to know where they are in what seems to be a limited pumpkin area.

You decide on telling him a half-truth, that you’re terrible with directions and that you may have gotten lost after running through the forest from the farm nearby. You omit the name of the farm, to avoid suspicion from him. If he were familiar with the area, he would know in a heartbeat if you said the wrong name of the neighbouring farm. You hoped that there was another pumpkin field here close by as well.

The explanation seems to work and Yoosung is smiling at you. You marvel at his soft features and just how shiny his hair looked. But, it was his eyes that startle you. In your reality, there was no such thing as natural violet eyes in the world.

You had ended up staring at him for too long it would seem because he flushed scarlet from the attention.

Yoosung finally stands up and extends his hand out to you. You stare at his outstretched hand for a moment and wonder if grabbing his hand will break the illusion. Reaching out and grabbing his hands he pulls you up.

He was real, this was real, and you can’t help but smile at this insanity.

“Are you out here picking pumpkins on your own?” you ask him. Yoosung has this sheepish expression on his face as he admits that he was on his own.

You wonder why the others weren’t with him. Better yet, why wasn’t MC helping him pick out pumpkins? Usually, in the game, your character would always want to help everyone. You frown at the idea of MC not being kind to the other RFA members.

There’s something sad about Yoosung; you take note of his sagged shoulders and how his hands are tucked into his pant pockets. His eyes look up at the sky, searching for something. Hopefully, this sadness was nothing Rika related.

“Well, since we’re both out here on our own, I’ll help you find a pumpkin then,” you announce and you see how his eyes light up. A smile breaks out on his lips.

“Are you sure? I mean, I’m sure you have somewhere to be.”

You shake your head no, for the moment you were stuck there.

You take in your surroundings once more and it seems like an endless field. Yoosung has begun his search for the perfect pumpkin. You laugh at how closely he leans to the pumpkins and even knocks on some of them.

“Hey! Yoosung, smile!” You call out and snap a few photos of his adorable face. This was the real-life Yoosung and you sure as hell weren’t going to waste the opportunity.

Yoosung pouts as you show him the silly photos you took of him earlier.

“No fair!…” Yoosung pauses and you notice a shift in his attitude. His face turns red once more as he murmurs something.

You frown and ask him to repeat what he just said.

“I said, I never actually asked what your name was,” Yoosung responds. Your heart freezes and you panic. You weigh your options carefully and decide to give another white lie.

Since in all otomes the name is usually the player name, you decide to call yourself what everyone calls the main character when discussing the game.

“Well, my friends call me MC” Yoosung looks at you funny.

“What kind of name is MC?” he blurts out but immediately covers his mouth with his hands.

“Sorry!” he quickly says after.

You laugh at his reaction and decide that his response just proved that you made the correct decision. If he didn’t recognize the name MC, then it meant that the body you used as the player had gone by a different name.

Maybe it was your name...

“It’s my nickname, actually. My name isn’t really MC.” Grinning at Yoosung, you notice how his eyes widen and how he nods his head in understanding.

“Ah, I see. So what is your real name, then?” he asks you.

At this point, you both have stopped looking for a pumpkin and are back at the hill sitting.

“That’s a secret. Maybe when we become better friends, I'll tell you.” You feel a sting in your heart for a moment. Would you be able to become better friends with him? You were both from different worlds…

“In that case, I think I will definitely find out!” Yoosung is smiling and there is something carefree about it. Whatever sadness he had when he stumbled upon you is now gone, at least for now. You’re relieved at this and hope that MC, the avatar spends time with him as well.

Yoosung pulls out his phone and you notice him fiddling with it.

“Hey MC, can I get your contact?” You nod your head and take the phone from his hands. You type in MC for your contact name and your phone number. Handing it back to Yoosung, you notice how he looks at the number confused.

It probably looks odd to him.

“I’m not from here,” you say and Yoosung looks up and gives an embarrassed smile. You hand him your phone asking for his contact as well. He types it in and you're tempted to try it then and there.

“Can I give it a try?” you ask him.

“There’s no reception on the farm for some reason,” replies Yoosung.

You curse in your head but know that this is probably for the best. You didn’t belong to this world. Also, what were the rates for interdimensional calling, anyway? You chuckle at your joke.

“So any big Halloween plans?” you ask and feel the drumming in your heart. You had to find out about everyone else.

Yoosung tells you about how he and his friends are going to throw a Halloween Party. He goes into detail about the fancy venue and activities they were going to have. His eyes are glowing, and his hands are flying up in the air when he describes the giant jack-o-lantern that they were going to have at the party.

He pauses for a moment and his voice trails off. Yoosung is deep in thought and you can practically see the gears turning in his head before he turns to you smiling.

“Hey, MC, would you be able to attend this party?”

You sit there stunned for a moment, and your heart is screaming YES. You wanted to see them all, the RFA you cherished so much. The RFA past the 11 days.

“I’d love to! But wouldn’t I need permission from your party planner?” You tested out.

“How did you…” Yoosung looks at you with his mouth hanging open.

“Well, it sounded like a fancy party and I figure you had someone in charge of all that.” It was a smooth half-lie again. Part of you felt terrible for misleading him but knew it was necessary.

“Um…” Yoosung trails off and you see his eyes go distant again.

Oh, no. What did MC do?

“We had a party planner a while ago, but she’s gone missing…”

Missing… How in the world?! Your avatar has gone missing after the 11 days? Your mind tries to make sense of all the information.

“I’m sorry,” you muster out in shock.

Yoosung avoids your eyes, but he explains how he had known their party planner only for 11 days and how she disappeared without a trace. You notice how Yoosung seems to be avoiding saying her name.

“I’m sure you’ll find her one day,” you reassure him while placing your hand on his arm. His eyes are brimming with tears and you feel your heart clench. You wanted to be there too, past the 11 days, but it just wasn’t possible in your world.

“Thanks, MC,” he whispers. You stand up and extend your hand to him, mimicking the scene that played out earlier when he first found you.

“Let’s find that pumpkin so you can carve it out and show it to your friends!” You smile at him and find him smiling back at you. He grabs hold of your hand as you pull him back on his feet.

You both continue looking through the pumpkin patch. Yoosung was telling you tales about his close group of friends and you too would tell him about some of your adventures. Eventually, Yoosung did find the perfect pumpkin. It was during the middle of his story that he stopped and found it.

“Congratulations!” you shout out. Yoosung raises his hand for a high five and you oblige.

“The pumpkin search is finally over! I’m just going to grab another one so I can bake something for Zen to try out later.” Yoosung is cutting the stem of another Pumpkin close by and you make him promise to record Zen trying out his baked pie later.

Yoosung decides that he wants to take a selfie with you since it was a team effort to find the pumpkin. It’s Yoosung who first takes a photo and you ask him to also take one with your camera. He snaps a few pictures and you can’t help but beam at the photos.

Just as you are looking at the pictures, Yoosung shifts from foot to foot.

“Hey MC, I meant it about the Halloween party. Don’t worry; I’ll talk to Jumin, but please tell me you’ll attend?” He looks at you waiting for an answer.

“Of course, just text me the details later.” You weren’t lying, but you weren’t sure that you would be able to see him again.

“MC, are you okay?” You notice his eyes are on your hands.

Your palms are in a tight fist. When did that happen?

You immediately stretch your hands out and try to play it off as nothing.

“Anyways, I better grab my pumpkin!” you announce to try and lighten the mood. Yoosung nods, and he walks with you back to the hill you left it at.

“There it is!” You point it out and hurry to the pumpkin to pick it up.

For a moment you hear Yoosung’s voice shouting “MC!” but its gone as quickly as it came. The whole field around you is replaced by the forest you were in earlier. How in the world?!

You call out to Yoosung but hear no response. What was going on? You then hear someone calling you by your real name instead of MC and it sounded a lot like your friend. Walking towards the voice, you expect for the trees never to open up to the field.

Unlike earlier, you end up walking to the field with that picturesque farmhouse and barn. You see your friend looking at you with worry.

“Where were you?! I was calling your name for a few minutes now and you weren’t responding! I was about to go in and drag you out myself.”

A few minutes?! You were sure you’d been gone at least a few hours.

You place the pumpkin on the ground and throw your arms around her.

“Hey, are you okay? You’re shaking.” You look up at her confused and begin telling her about your mysterious encounter.

“Yoosung from Mystic Messenger!? Are you sure?” she asks. You nod and pull out your phone to show her the photos you had taken.

Part of you worried that the pictures had gone missing like in those cliché movies, but there it was, still on your phone. All the photos of the hill, all the photos of Yoosung knocking on the pumpkin and finally, the selfie he had taken with you.

You were smiling up at the camera holding the pumpkin; while a grinning Yoosung was holding you close to keep you in the frame as he took the photo.


End file.
